The Impact of Virtual Instruction on the Transition to College: Evidence from COVID-19 / Nolan G. Pope, Yu Hung Yaow.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Pope, Nolan G.

Contributor:

Yaow, Yu Hung.

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w34999.

NBER working paper series no. w34999

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2026.

Summary:

During the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual instruction reduced in-person support that may have helped high school students transition to college. Using national school-level data on FAFSA submissions, ACT participation, and first-year college enrollment, we estimate a difference-in-differences model that exploits cross-school variation in virtual instruction during the 2020/2021 school year. A fully virtual school year reduced FAFSA submissions by 4.2 percentage points, ACT participation by 4.8 percentage points, and first-year college enrollment by 2.5 percentage points. FAFSA submissions partially rebounded after reopening, but ACT participation and college enrollment did not. Effects were substantially larger in disadvantaged schools.

Notes:

March 2026.

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